Best Sunscreen For Scars To Prevent Scars From Darkening

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The best sunscreen for scars will provide effective protection to your skin against the UV rays. Thereby, preventing your scar from darkening and aids in healing. As scars are more sensitive than normal skin, you want to make sure you protect your skin with the best sunscreen for scars that offer reliable sun protection. The sun can make your scars darker so you should really use a sunscreen if you want your scars to fade.

How to Choose the Best Sunscreen For Scars

1. Choose a sunscreen that has broad spectrum UV protection

The Skin Cancer Foundation recommends to use a sunscreen that provides broad spectrum protection. Broad spectrum means that the sunscreen protects against both UVA and UVB rays. Both UVA and UVB rays cause skin damage. And since the scarred area is more sensitive, it is more susceptible to sun damage. Sun damage could impede the healing of scars and darken your scars. Therefore, you need to make sure your scars are well protected from UV rays through the use of a broad spectrum sunscreen.

2. Select a sunscreen that has an SPF of at least 30

Dermatologists and the Skin Cancer Foundation recommend the usage of sunscreen with at least SPF30, regardless of whether your skin has scars or not. SPF30 protects against 97% of UV rays, SPF50 protects against 98% of UV rays, and SPF100 protects against 99% of UV rays. Since the difference is minimal, it is not important to choose an SPF level of more than 30.

Choosing an extremely high SPF could also mislead you into reapplying less amount of sunscreen due to the wrongful perception that it provides a much higher UV protection. Hence, the FDA has capped the maximum SPF label to be 50+. In addition, it is common beauty knowledge in Japan that too high of an SPF would burden the skin. This is regardless of whether it is an sunscreen with physical or chemical UV filters.

Even though an SPF of at least 30 provides high protection against UV rays, you would still need to reapply sunscreen frequently. On a casual day when you hardly sweat, you should reapply every 3-4 hours. If you are participating in sports activities and sweat a lot, then you should reapply every 2-3 hours at least.

3. Choose a tinted sunscreen if you want some slight coverage for your scars

If you are very conscious about the appearance of your scars, you may consider using a tinted sunscreen which would provide a slight coverage for your scars. Tinted sunscreens could make your skin appear more even-toned and healthy. Hence, it might give you a confidence boost. In addition, these tinted sunscreens do not leave the dreaded white cast on your skin.

However, if you you want to have more coverage for the scars, you may consider using BB creams for sensitive skin. Even though those BB creams contain sunscreen filters, I highly recommend you to use a sunscreen underneath the BB cream as well for an extra layer of sun protection. This is to ensure that you get enough sun protection for your scars because many people do not apply enough BB cream to achieve the level of sunscreen protection stated on the bottle.

4. Use a sunscreen that does not feel drying on your skin

When it comes to healing scars, you need to make sure your skin is well hydrated. Dry or dehydrated skin would result into slow healing of scars. Therefore, you need to make sure that your skincare products are not drying for your skin, which include sunscreens. If any sunscreens feel drying, you should use a good moisturizer underneath your sunscreen to remedy the situation.

The best sunscreen for scars recommended below contain Zinc Oxide. This is because Zinc Oxide is a very effective UV protector for sensitive skin and scars. However, Zinc Oxide is an astringent which could be drying on certain skin types. This is especially a concern for those with dry skin and dehydrated skin. If you find that the sunscreens below are drying, you may consider choosing a sunscreen from this list instead: Best Sunscreen For Dry Skin And Dehydrated Skin

If you would like your sunscreen to not only protect your skin against UV rays, but also to acts like a light foundation to cover up some of your scars, then Suntegrity 5 in 1 Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen SPF 30 is the sunscreen for you. It is a tinted sunscreen which is available in 4 shades which are fair, light, golden light, andmedium.

Suntegrity 5 in 1 Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen SPF 30 is a 5 in 1 product that treats, hydrates, protects, primes and covers the skin. It contains 20% of non-nano zinc oxide which is the safest form of zinc oxide. Thus, this sunscreen is suitable for those who are sensitive to chemical sunscreens and other chemicals. Moreover, non-nano zinc oxide also protects very well against UVA1 rays, unlike nano Zinc Oxide.

Suntegrity 5 in 1 Natural Moisturizing Face Sunscreen SPF 30 is a sunscreen recommended by dermatologists. It moisturizes your skin without feeling greasy and provides a light coverage that looks natural and not cakey. In addition, it is a vegan product and is non-toxic! This sunscreen is also water-resistant and works well as a makeup primer. Hence, it is a multi-purpose sunscreen which is perfect for the minimalist.

Heliocare sunscreens are highly recommended by dermatologist for its high UV protection and compatibility with sensitive skin. Dermatologists would recommend this sunscreen even for post-laser treatments or other strong treatments like chemical peels. Therefore, even if your scars are fresh and sensitive, this Heliocare sunscreen is perfectly suitable for you.

Heliocare SPF 50+ UVB/UVA Extreme Protection Gel is a transparent gel which is so lightweight and absorbs into your skin without any white residue. Hence, no one would be able to tell that you have sunscreen on. As this sunscreen has a gel texture, it is not oily or greasy so it is really comfortable on the skin.

This sunscreen provides reliable and long-lasting protection against the sun even when you use it for outdoor sports. It is water-resistant so you can rely on this sunscreen even for water activities!

If you are looking for a reliable mineral sunscreen without white cast, then you would love Exuviance Sheer Daily Protector SPF50 PA++++. Naturally, Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide are mineral UV filters that leave a white cast on the skin, but this Exuviance sunscreen has a universal tint that suits all skin tones and do not leave a white cast.

Exuviance Sheer Daily Protector SPF50 PA++++ feels comfortable on the skin as it applies like a moisturizer. It also contains many ingredients which are beneficial to the skin. For instance, it contains multi-antioxidants, vitamin E and lactobionic acid to fortify the skin barrier and protect against skin damage from free radicals.

Furthermore, this sunscreen contains PHA/Bionic complex which prevents collagen from breaking down so your skin would remain firm and youthful. On top of that, the sunscreen is also formulated with concentrated Green Tea Extract to reduce cellular breakdown and guard cellular DNA.

Exuviance Sheer Daily Protector SPF50 PA++++ is a non-waterproof sunscreen which is great for daily use when you do not sweat a lot. Moreover, it is an ideal sunscreen if you want to remove your sunscreen easily at the end of the day. This sunscreen is also free from parabens, fragrance and oil so it is unlikely to irritate or cause breakouts on the skin.

Shiseido sunscreens are the gold standard when it comes to sunscreens in Japan. Many Japanese people would use Shiseido sunscreens when they want an absolutely reliable sun protection when they are going to spend long hours under the sun, such as in the beach or sports. Hence, it is definitely going to protect your scars well.

Shiseido Wetforce Perfect UV Protector is perfectly suitable to be worn daily and not only for sports purposes. This is because the sunscreen is very cosmetically elegant. It is incredibly lightweight, not oily, and not drying either. Therefore, you will feel very comfortable using this sunscreen.

Shiseido Wetforce Perfect UV Protector has a pinkish beige tint which makes your skin look healthier and smoother. The tint also just slightly make the scars appear lighter and your skin more even-toned. This sunscreen lasts so long on the skin as it is resistant to water, sebum and sweat. In fact, its Wetforce technology makes its UV protection stronger when exposed to water!

The con of this sunscreen is that it contains alcohol. If your scarred skin is very sensitive and dry, it might not be able to tolerate the alcohol in this sunscreen. Thus, you need to exercise caution when using this sunscreen. If your skin can tolerate this sunscreen, then it is an excellent choice for your scars. This is because Shiseido sunscreens are well-loved worldwide for their cosmetic elegance and highly effective UV protection. It is the number 1 sunscreen for many Japanese people when they are going to spend long hours under the sun.